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"J. 'w; ALEXANDER. Crane for Loading Vessels.

No. 224,505. I Pafen ted Feb. 17, 1880.

NAETERS. PHDTD-UTHUGRAPHER. WASHMGION. 0. C.

.IoHNfw. ALEXA NDEaoFfNEWYORK; NJYI', :Assie non:O ONE HABFQOF HIS :RIGHT EGfAJ.:POUGH,OF sAMEPL AoEW v,

3 Cameron to n l nyc \lxESSiElLS.

SPECIFICATION-forming part oflI1etters .-Patent No. 224,505, daeartmr 17,1880;

zApplica'tion filedJanuaryle,1880. v

To all-whomtiming concern: 1

Be'it'knownthat I, JOHNTW. ALETKNDER, of the city, countyfan d StateofNewYork, have invented a new'ahduseful Improvement 5 inOranes for Loading andUnloatlingVess'ls,

of which thefollowing is azspecification;

The invention "relatesto cranes or ileri'icks for'elevat-ing and transferring barrels, boxes, &c.', fromonelevel'to' another. I 'It consists in the combination,withadjusa able and movable *arms supported swung.

from a suitable derrickepost, of-an'endless car ryin g-ch ain arranged to travel? 'upon" said" arins and to depend from their inner endsto-the foot I 5 of' the derrick-postandifrom'their outer ends down to thedesiredlevel ofrdelivery.

The'object of my inventionisto utilize the weightof thepackagesdowered'atone end" of thecrane in lifting'the'paclrages'elevated upon the chain at the other,-so that wherethe'packages are to be delivered at a lower levelthan I .that from which they are'liftedth'e operation of transferring themmay beac complishedautom'aticallyby their own weight, and other 2 5 wise, where thelevel'of delivery isthe high est,"

, the transfervwill require but little more power than' is needed to lift the *pakagesfrom the loading to the'unloading *level,-the'lift to'an additional height for facility oftransfer bein g 0 compensated by the corresponding fall.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure '1 is aside elevation of my improved 'cranewhen employed in loadinga vessel 'withbarrlsfrom a wharf, Fig. 2 being a front, and Fig. 3'arear,

5 elevation of thesame.

Similar letters refer to similar parts'throug'h out the several views. p In its generalfeatures my improvedcrane constructed of upper and'lower arms,A and 40 B, swung from a derrick post,"O,"-and adjustable thereon, and eachofiawhich is'ma'de-d ou ble to support properly a pair of connected endless'chains, DD, Fig. 2. g in V The derrick-postG may bemadesingleand the armsbe swung thereonloy means of collars or hands; or it may be made double, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, to provide for a separatesupport for the inner end offeach'o'f therarms;

In the form of constructionillustrated in the accompanying drawings the parallel upstepped and secured ina suitable ba'se block, and connect ed at the topby a transverse bar, E. The interval between the uprights is preferablyleft sufficiently wide to admit of'th'c passage of a barrel lengthwise between them. Thes enpright-s of the derrick=post are slotted longitudinally in'one direction to receive and confinetheinner ends ofthe'beams AK A and to 'receivethe ends of rodsFiand'G,'Figs. 2 and 3, passing through theinner ends of said beam sto connect them in pairs, the'onter ends of each pair being connectedand coupled by .transversebars orrods H K. v

v The innerends oftheconnected beams A A giormingthe upper armof'the crane,are upheld and adjusted, as required, upon the post by means of a fall and tackle, L, '(see Fig. 3,) suspended from the upper transverse bar, E,- of "thelpost, and which engage the transverse connecting-rod F. The inner ends of the counectedbeams B" B, forming the lowerfarm of the crane, are upheldand ad justed in' like mannerby means of a fall and 7 5 tackle. M,suspended from the upper bar,E, Theouter ends of the upper' and lower arms,

A and B, are, in likelmanuer, each supported and adjusted by; means of a fall andtackle extending to the outer connectiug-bars,H and Kffrom eyes or staples on the outer side of the derrick-post at its upper end, as shownin Figs. Ian'dS. I v v Uponthe inner side of each beam of "the upper and lower arms, A B, a series of friction- 8 5 rollers, N N, are pivoted,tl1e inner end of each roller beingrformed with a widdfiange, P. Theupper. arm, A, is fitted with these rollers fromend to end; but on the lower arm, B, one set of" the rollersis omitted at its ou'terend 9o an'dtwo or more at its inner end, as shown in Fig. 1. I i

' A double'endless chain 'con'sistingof two chains, D D, (see. Fig. 2,) connected at regular intervals bytransverse rods, is; carried over 5 l therollers-N. The transverse rodsare of such length asto keep the two chains separated by aninterval corresponding with that 'between thebeaiiis A A and B B of the armsfso that the chains shall each rest, respectively, upon me the friction-rollers on either side when led along the arms. 1 Each rod connecting the chains D D may be covered by a loose sleeve, consisting of a tube fitted thereon to serve as a roller, so that the rods shall pass easily over any obstacle in the path thereof, and to facilitate, likewise, the self-adjustment of the lifting-hooks depending therefrom.

A pair of sprocket-wheels, S S, are fitted upon a shaft, V, which is suitably supported upon brackets T T at the foot of the derrick, to engage the chain at this point, the shaft V being fitted with cranks X X at each end to operate the same.

A second pair of sprocket-wheels, S S, are substituted for friction-rollers, to receive and engage the chain at the inner end of the lower arm, B, and a third pair, S S are substituted for friction-rollers at the outer end of said arm. These sprocket-wheels S S on the arm B of the derrick are made to move in unison with those upon the crank-shaft V by means of chain-gearing on each side of the arm, actuated by suitable toothed wheels Y Y Y, fixed on the shaft and upon the arbor of each sprocket-wheel S S the arbor being made to project for the purpose from the inner to the outer side of the beams of the arm.

The double endless chain D D is led over the friction-rollers N upon the upper arm, A; thence dropping, at the inner end of said arm, to the sprocket-wheels S S at the foot of the derrick-post, is led under the same, and back up over the sprocket-wheels S S and frictionrollers upon the lower arm, B, and out over the same to the sprocket-wheels S S at the end of said arm, and, passing over these wheels, is allowed to drop far enough to reach the lowest level of delivery to which the crane is to be directed, and then carried up to the rollers of the upper arm, as shown in Fig. 1.

Lifting tongs or hooks W W are suspended to swing free from the center of each transverse rod of the endless chain D D.

In the operation of this apparatus for liftin g and transferring barrels or other parcels from a wharf to the hold of a vessel, the derrick-post O is firmly secured at its base upon the wharf, so that its arms A B may swing over the deck of the vessel to its hatchway, and the arms are properly adjusted in height by means of the fall and tackle L and M provided for the purpose.

The lower arm, 13, is fixed at such a height that the barrels carried out thereon shall clear the bulwark of the vessel, and the upper arm is elevated sufficiently to take up the slack of the chain D D remaining after the chain has been dropped to the proper level in the hold.

The barrels are rolled under the sprocketwheels S S at the foot of the derrick, and

caught in succession by the lifting-hooks W depending from the chain.

At the start the chain is put in motion by the cranks X X operating the shaft V, its sprocket-wheels S S, and the connected wheels S and S to lift and carry forward the barrels loaded upon the chain at the foot of the derrick; but so soon as the barrels passing beyond the outer end of the lower arm begin to drop into the hold, their weight, counterbalancing and overbalancing the weight of the barrels lifted at the inner end of the arm, will hoist the same as fast as caught by the hooks W of the chain, and carry them out to the end of the arm, so that the movements of the chain in lifting and transferring the barrels from the wharf to the hold will become automatic, the only power required to effect the same being that expended at the start. The too rapid movement of the chain is governed by means of a friction-brake, Z, applied to the sprocket-wheel shaft V, as shown in Fig. 1.

I claim as my inventiony l. The combination of adjustable and movable arms supported and swinging from a derrick-post with an endless carrying-chain traveling upon said arms, adapted to drop from their inner ends to the foot of the derrick-post and from their outer ends to the point of delivery, so that the weight of packages lowered by the chain shall facilitate the elevation of packages hoisted thereby.

2. The combination of connected endless chains D D with independent friction-rollers upon the inner face of each beam of the adjustable arms A B of a crane, to permit the free passage of articles suspended from the connecting-bars of the chain between said beams and rollers, substantially as herein described.

3. The combination of the independent sprocket-wheels S S upon the inner side of each beam 13 B in the double arm B of a crane with toothed wheels and chain-gearing connecting the same upon the outer side of each beam, substantially as described.

4. The combination, with the sprocket-wheels S S upon the lower arm of a crane, the chaingearing connecting the same, and the endless chain actuated thereby, of sprocket-wheels S S upon the crank-shaft at the foot of the crane, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

5. The derrick-post 0, provided with adjustable and movable arms A B, brackets T T, shaft V, cranks XX, and sprocket-Wheels S S S in in combination with the endless chain D D and friction-rollers N N, all adapted, substantially as described, for facilitating the automatic elevation of packages to be hoisted by the weight of those which are being lowered.

Witness my hand to said specification this 10th day of January, 1880.

JNO. W. ALEXANDER. 

